{"nrhp_refnum":"86003573","name":"Bradford County Courthouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"301 Main St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Towanda","county":"Bradford County","state":"PA","lat":41.76645550300003,"lon":-76.43887735999994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1987-01-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A four-story cruciform courthouse with a large dome, standing on a lot in Towanda, Bradford County, Pennsylvania, on the west bank of the Susquehanna River. It was built in 1896-1898 to designs by Lehman and Schmitt of Cleveland, Ohio, with Thomas Bradley of Corning, New York as contractor.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the courthouse is architecturally prominent in the Northern Tier Region because of its large scale, elegant design, costly materials, and combination of Neo-Classical, Early Renaissance Revival and Beaux Arts styles. It was selected through an open architectural competition and has no close counterpart among the monumental buildings of the surrounding area. Its adjoining 1847-1848 brick annex is cited as a link to an earlier period of county history.","narrative":"Built in 1896-1898 in Towanda, the Bradford County Courthouse is a four-story cruciform building of native sandstone, topped by an octagonal dome roughly 50 feet across and a cupola carrying a silver-plated statue of Justice. Its west facade combines Neo-Classical features, with a Tuscan double portico and a pediment inscribed with the words Justice, Law, Mercy, while the rear and side arms follow the Early Renaissance Revival manner. The interior adds Beaux Arts planning, with marble mosaic floors, oak woodwork throughout, and a rotunda chandelier about 54 feet above the first floor. Chosen in 1895 from designs submitted by competing architects, the building was designed by Lehman and Schmitt of Cleveland and built by Thomas Bradley of Corning, New York, at a contract price of $113,866. It is valued for its scale, materials, and the rare combination of styles in a single county building. The adjoining brick annex dates from 1847-1848 and is a reminder of earlier courthouses on the site.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Lehman & Schmitt (architects); Thomas Bradley (builder)","architectural_style":"Neo-Classical, Early Renaissance Revival and Beaux Arts","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Document states the courthouse and annex retain excellent integrity and remain in appearance as when first constructed.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:33.978103-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/86003573.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003573/876b48ba09-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/86003573/876b48ba09-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bradford_County_Courthouse_Nov_09.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bradford_County_Courthouse_Nov_09.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71998372","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bradford_County_Courthouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4954651"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/bradford-county/bradford-county-courthouse-86003573/"}